With a difference in height of almost 6.5 feet, the world’s tallest and shortest men met for the first time in London on Thursday.
Sultan Kosen, eight-foot-three, and Chandra Bahadur Dangi, 21.5 inches, met at St. Thomas’ Hospital as part of the 10th annual Guinness World Records Day.
“I love London and to be able to finally meet Chandra after all this time is amazing,” said Kosen, according to the Guinness website.
Kosen, stooped down to shake the world’s biggest hands -- 28.5 cm (11.22 inches) -- with Dangi opposite the Houses of Parliament. “I was very interested how tall he was going to be, about how far up my legs he would go, and of course once I saw him I realized how tiny he was,” Kosen told AFP.
“Even though he is short and I am tall, we have had similar struggles throughout our lives and when I look into Chandra’s eyes, I can see he’s a good man,” the 31-year-old farmer from Turkey added.
Amazing & Exciting
He said meeting Chandra was “amazing”, although he admitted bending the long, long way down for photographs was difficult.
“I do have problems with my knees so if I stand too long I do get tired,” he said. Dangi expressed similar excitement at meeting Kosen. “I’m honored to be in London, I’ve always wanted to visit and the fact I get to meet Sultan is special,” said the 75-year-old from Nepal.
“It makes me extremely proud to represent Nepal all around the world, I’m extremely humbled by the support I receive.”
Dangi, a primordial dwarf who makes placemats, is the shortest adult ever certified by Guinness Records.
“I was very pleased to see the tallest man in the world, I was curious to meet my extreme opposite,” he said.
